MixBall

Music is a big part of my life. I have a voracious appetite for recorded music, and I’m working on my own humble contribution to the universe of sound. Like many aspiring composers, I’ve dreamed of creating songs that touch many lives. It hasn’t been easy – profound communication through music is an especially difficult task. In today’s world where every musical idea is measured, recorded, licensed, and purchased, that task is harder than it has ever been. I attended school with several people who are now working musicians, struggling for excellence in a craft which has been commoditized to the point of disposability.

Maybe digital distribution and piracy didn’t cause this, but many of us have still forgotten to respect the artistic process. If I were to release an original music demo, it would almost certainly be lost in a sea of other free legal or illegal content, and the prospect of eventually making usable money in this way without staging live events is not great. It feels like a step backwards, if not an unexpected development.

Knowing this, I decided to make a demo which subverts the trend. My first release of original music is now available, but only in an interactive format. MixBall is a special game that mixes the music while you play. I’m not charging money yet, but you’ll have to spend time and energy “beating” each mix, so it might make you think a bit about value. If it achieves that, I will consider it a success. The catchy tunes are a bonus, hopefully you’ll enjoy them too.

You might be wondering why this countercultural experiment is hosted on Apple’s App Store and requires an iOS device. The answer has to do with hardware limitations. I was interested in building for Android as well, but low-latency sound requires considerate effort, and Apple has the whole portable music pedigree to boot. Hopefully that doesn’t offend anyone.